The History of Antarctic Exploration
Tag: antarctica
Oldest Ice Core in Antarctica Being Studied
Climatologists have started to drill into the oldest ice core in Antarctica to find some air that may have been there around 1 million to 900,000 years ago. The teams are from Australia, China, and Europe in a friendly type competition to find samples of air that is about 1.5 million years old. They would like to find out what […]
Read moreMillion year old ice in Antarctica
There is some million year old ice deep in Antarctica that researchers are hoping to find out information on the earths past. They believe that they can predict the effect of co2 in some bubbles that are in the ice. Climate change is on their minds by unearthing these bubbles. Scientists from the Australian Antarctic Division are getting so close […]
Read moreLarge Antarctic Glacier Cavity Found
A large Antarctic glacier cavity two-thirds the size of Manhattan has been discovered. Scientists have discovered a huge cavity at the bottom of a disintegrating glacier in Antarctica, creating concerns that the ice sheet is melting much more rapidly than expected. The researchers found the cavity using Italian and German satellites and ice-penetrating radar from Nasa’s Operation IceBridge, which uses […]
Read moreDestroying Antarctica While Attempting To Save It
Are the scientists working to save Antarctica’s fragile ecosystem inadvertently contributing to its destruction? Could they possibly be Destroying Antarctica? A new study has linked a chemical used in flame-retardants—called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs)—that is contaminating the Antarctic environment to Australia’s Casey research station. Researchers found that dust and treated wastewater at the station contained PBDEs and another chemical that […]
Read moreHow Sea Ice Forms
Sea ice is formed from ocean water that freezes. Because the oceans consist of saltwater, this occurs at about minus 1.8 degrees Celsius (28.8 degrees Fahrenheit). Most Antarctic sea ice occurs annually, meaning it forms in the winter and melts during the summer. Sea ice regulates exchanges of heat, moisture and salinity in the polar oceans. It insulates the relatively warm […]
Read moreAntarctic Fish Have Ice In Their Veins
Scientists have revealed that some fish that thrive in the freezing cold waters of the Antarctic actually have ice in their veins. A protein in their system called notothenioids not only keep the fish from freezing to death, but also keeps ice crystals in their veins. Although the ice crystals would melt at temperatures just slightly above freezing, the fish […]
Read moreBlood Falls: Flowing Network Discovered Below Antarctica’s Dry Valleys
Research shows there may be an entire world underneath Antarctica’s ice-free Dry Valleys, which on the surface may seem hostile to life. Below the surface lies rivers of liquid salt water which flow into subsurface lakes, every drop of which could be swarming with microbial life. One of Antarctica’s most unique features, the briny, rusty-red colored Blood Falls, could possibly […]
Read moreFossil of ‘real-life Loch Ness Monster’ found in Antarctica
The fossil of a sea creature that lived around the earth approximately 70 million years was found around Antarctica. The remains were located about 1966 but were not able to be removed from the rock until now. Researchers uncovered the remains of what they are calling an Elasmosaurus or the real-life Loch Ness Monster. When it was alive it could […]
Read moreRadioactive Dust From a Supernova on Antarctica
Scientists have found some radioactive dust from a supernova that landed in Antarctica when a star exploded millions of years ago. The radioactive dust from a supernova was discovered under thousands pounds of snow. They are hoping to be able to find out a lot more about the history of our galaxy. Especially how the cosmic environment ended up surrounding […]
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